I finished it while on vacation but wanted to be home before putting it in the leather holder. I was worried about cutting so close to the stitched border. And, the shape doesn’t look right for the opening but it must be!

It was the right size & a little tricky but I managed ok. And, Bill loves it!

The golf tee holder looks great! And, it arrived in time for his Labor Day tournament. Hope it brings him good luck!

Karen Milano at Nimble Needle did a great job finishing it & was kind enough to send me a picture of it! No affiliation with the shop (50D Tanner Street, Haddonfield NJ 08033, 856- 354-8100, www.nimbleneedle.net), just glad to have another wonderful store to visit. Now, we have a great excuse to go to Jersey for breakfast & pick it up Saturday before Hurricane Irene blows by us dumping more rain on us. Earthquake earlier this week & now a hurricane! Wild weather for Philly!

The design is all stitched & ready for finishing. So, I have an opportunity to visit Nimble Needle again while Bill is out golfing! How appropriate. Karen did explain how I could do the finishing myself but that was about 3 weeks ago & it sounded a little tricky because the edge has to be cut so close to the design. There is no point of ruining it now.

I just got the thread so I could indicate what color I used for the background & you’ll never guess the name it – I hadn’t noticed it until now. It’s Honeydew (Wildflowers, #228) – for my Honey!! I can just hear everyone go ahhhh!!

I began stitching this 3-inch diameter insert for a “golf tee holder” Sunday night. But, I didn’t get it done for my husband Bill’s birthday which was today because we’ve been celebrating.

He mentioned recently that I’ve never stitched anything for him. I finally remembered that I’d cross-stitched bowling towel that he used for years. But, as far as needlepointing him something, I hadn’t done anything for him.

It was so fitting that my husband saw a sign for Nimble Needle on Saturday for Nimble Needle in Haddonfield, NJ when we went to Omaha Steaks (instead of our usual Chestnut Hill store)! I had totally forgotten it was in Haddonfield. So, we walked around the corner, down a couple of blocks & stopped in for a visit.

Eventually, my husband mentioned I’d won a couple of national awards & I had already said I was with ANG Mainline Stitchers! And Karen Milano, the store owner, said “Are you Melita Glavin, the blogger??” Amazing!

So, we were having a nice chat while I was looking around, with no intention of adding to my projects, when I spied the change purse with a golf logo & asked if it was big enough to hold his tees in it. He already has a bag for his long tees but he likes to carry short ones too! And, so, I began stitching using threads from my stash. I’m using the tent stitch & it is working up quickly.

As a wonderful by-product, Karen has agreed to come to one of meetings to teach a class on a simple finishing technique for a small round ornament. So often, we want to stitch a gift for friends but the cost of finishing can be so high that you can’t give them away as casual gifts. I had a lesson a year ago & it really helped me appreciate all the work that does go into finishing needlepoint. So, now when I do pay $60-$80 per piece, I realize that it is worth it. Our group will be thrilled.